An explosion of aromas on palate with lovely fragrances that will immediately transport you to Persia
Wash rice well with lukewarm water until the water is clear. Then soak for 2 - 3 hours with 1 tsp salt.
Grind saffron finely in a mortar.
Either pour 25 ml of boiling hot water over it, cover and let it steam.
Or pour ground saffron over 1 ice cube and let it melt.
In a saucepan, bring water to a boil, add the strained rice and cook for 2 minutes.
Break the reshteh noodles into small pieces, add to the boiling water and mix well. Cook for 3 -5 minutes. The rice should now be al-dente.
Drain rice and reshteh in a colander and rinse with cold water.
Add some oil to a non-stick pot or in a rice cooker, add 2 tablespoons of the bloomed saffron and mix well.
Pour in the rice and reshteh and cone them up, using the handle of a wooden spoon to poke a few holes in them until they reach the bottom.
Cover the lid of the pot with a clean kitchen towel (not necessary with the rice cooker from Reishunger) and steam the rice for 40 - 45 minutes at medium temperature.
In the meantime, sauté onion in a pan with a little oil, cut chicken fillet into small pieces, add and sauté on all sides.
Season with saffron threads, salt and pepper, turn once and cover with a little water. Cook chicken fillet for about 30 minutes at low temperature.
In the meantime, heat some oil in a pan, fry onion rings and add 1 tsp turmeric at the end, turn once. Set aside.
Heat 1 tbsp butter in the same pan, add raisins with some cinnamon and fry. Set aside.
Cut dates in half and remove seeds. Again heat 1 tbsp butter in the pan and now sauté the halved and pitted dates. Set aside.
Once rice is steamed, remove a large scoop of rice from pan and mix with remaining bloomed saffron and set aside.
Place remaining rice on a large tray, serve tahdig on an extra plate. In some places in Persia, people melt some ghee and spread it evenly over the finished rice.
Garnish with saffron rice, chicken breast fillets, onions, raisins, dates, pistachios and rose petals.
A refreshing dugh, sabzi khordan, a fresh salad shirazi and torshi go well with this.